Pek, Martin say they'll play tonight for Wolves at Sacramento

Blog Post by: Jerry Zgoda

March 1, 2014 - 2:50 PM

Wolves just wrapped up shootaround in Sacramento with Rick Adelman back after he returned from three days away and both Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin said afterward they are well enough to start and play against the Kings.

How much, neither could say.

Both practiced and scrimmaged 5-on-5 with their teammates on Thursday and Friday in Phoenix to prepare themselves to play again after weeks away.

"Two days to work out and I wake up not sore or nothing," Pekovic said. "The pain still is going to be there but hopefully it's not going to get worse. You can handle certain amount of pain. I just hope I don't go over it. For now, it's good. The last few days have been good. My conditioning is going to come, of course. I'll need four or five days to come back to that shape I was before. I'm more concerned about than my conditioning."

Still, he'll have to come back after a month away by banging with big Kings center DeMarcus Cousins, who returns tonight after serving a one-game suspension for Friday's game against the Lakers in L.A.

Martin said he'll still have pain, too, in that healing fractured thumb on his left shooting hand and said he used the last two days of practice to figure out how to catch with it.

"I'm sure I'll figure out more during the game," he said. "I have a good idea. Right now, it's just about getting back out there and helping the team in whatever way you can...I feel good enough to play. Couple good days of practice and everything felt good, so I'm ready to play."

Martin said he isn't concerned about his conditioning. He hasn't played since breaking that thumb Feb. 7 at New Orleans. Pekovic has played since Jan. 27 at Chicago because of ankle bursitis.

"Maybe a little but hopefully not once you get in a game and your adrenaline starts going,," Martin said when asked if he thinks conditioning will be a factor. "I'm a little gazelle, skinny guy. I can run all day."

Adelman was back at shoot after he flew home following Tuesday's victory at Phoenix to spend that three-day break with his wife, Mary Kay.